Prince William, Duke of Cambridge has said that the death of professional footballer and manager Gary Speed led to more men seeking help for mental health issues. The Duke of Cambridge made the revelation as he spoke of the need for football clubs to take more action to tackle mental health issues. Prince William, who is also president of the Football Association (FA), visited a charity which is working with those affected by recent non-sexual abuse in football. Referring to the death of former Wales captain Gary Speed, he added: “My understanding is following the tragic circumstances of Gary Speed, that started the ball rolling about people talking about their struggles and their problems.Speed had suffered a secret battle with depression was found hanged on November twenty seven, two thousand eleven. His wife Louise told an inquest into the forty two year old’s death his job had put a strain on their marriage as he was spending more time away from the family. Prince William made his comments during a visit to the charity Sporting Chance in Liphook, Hampshire.He was met by the charity’s founder and former Arsenal defender Tony Adams, who explained how it had got involved following the recent emergence of allegations. Prince William said: “We have been very good at tackling things like racism and such in football and the fact that we are now seen to be leading the way in football and mental health is fantastic. People’s mental well-being lives go beyond football.”

According to research, artificial sweeteners, which many people with weight issues use as a substitute for sugar, may increase the risk of developing type two diabetes. The study was small and the detailed results have not yet been published, but experts said its findings fitted with previous research showing an association between artificial sweeteners and weight gain. Type two diabetes is linked to obesity and rates of the disease are soaring around the world. Its complications, if it’s not controlled, can include blindness, heart attacks and strokes.The study was carried out by researchers at the University of Adelaide, in Australia, who wanted to investigate whether large amounts of no-calorie artificial sweeteners altered the ability of the body to control the levels of glucose in the blood. Some of the twenty seven healthy volunteers who were recruited for the study were given the equivalent of one point five litres of diet drink a day, in the form of capsules of two different sweeteners, sucralose and acesulfame K. They took the capsules three times a day for two weeks, before meals. The others in the study were given a placebo. Tests at the end of the two weeks showed that the body’s response to glucose was impaired. “This study supports the concept that artificial sweeteners could reduce the body’s control of blood sugar levels and highlights the potential for exaggerated post-meal glucose levels in high habitual NAS [non-caloric artificial sweeteners] users, which could predispose them to develop type two diabetes,” said the authors.….Diabetes UK was sceptical. Clinical adviser Emma Elvin stated: “This is a small study with interesting results, but it doesn’t provide strong evidence that artificial sweeteners increase the risk of type two diabetes.”

According to a new report, a new benefits system for disabled people is making their health worse, leaving many isolated and struggling to pay for food and bills. A major survey by more than eighty organisations found seventy nine percent of respondents said their assessments for personal independence payment (PIP) had made their health worse due to stress or anxiety.More than a third of those who have had their funding cut in the middle of a benefits shake-up said they were struggling to pay for food, rent and bills, while forty percent said they had become more isolated. A small number even said the PIP assessment process was so stressful it was causing them to have suicidal thoughts. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) said PIP was “a better benefit” than the old system and more people received higher levels of support. But members of the Disability Benefits Consortium (DBC) warned their findings from a survey of more than one thousand seven hundred people showed that PIP is failing “from start to finish”. Phil Reynolds, co-chairman of DBC and senior policy adviser at Parkinson’s UK, said: “For the first time, these findings paint the true picture of what it is like to go through the complex assessment process for PIP.

The DBC wants Government to urgently review PIP and make improvements, including simplified application forms, and removing the need for constant reassessment.Half the survey respondents said they were receiving less money under PIP than they were previously entitled to under DLA, or had lost their award completely.A quarter of these said they were not able to get to medical appointments after their funding was cut. The report also shows the number of decisions being overturned at appeal is increasing.Analysis suggests in two thousand sixteen, around one in every fourteen decisions made on PIP was eventually overturned in the claimant’s favour either at mandatory reconsideration or appeal. More than two point four million PIP decisions have been made, and of these eight percent have been appealed against and three percent have been overturned.

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